The Manhattan Theatre Club Spring Gala Hosted a Medley of New Broadway Musicals

The 2018 Broadway season has come and gone, but pre-Tonys parties—where theater lovers can gather and geek out about their favorite shows—provide a chance to relive the best plays all over again. That was certainly the case last night when the Manhattan Theatre Club (MTC) hosted its annual spring gala at Cipriani in midtown, where a medley of Tony-nominated musicals performed: The Band’s Visit, Once on This Island, Frozen, and SpongeBob SquarePants among them.

The space was swathed in purple light projections (theater parties always have a way of incorporating great lighting) as guests came together over predinner cocktails. While the conversation centered around the stage, the focus on the step-and-repeat was hostess Condola Rashad’s dress, as everyone from press agents to production assistants marveled at the ruffled and printed Carolina Herrera design while the actress twirled for photographers. “There was something very elegant and old-school New York about the cut,” Rashad said, “but the pattern puts a modern twist on it.”

The glittering occasion went more than thread-deep for Rashad, who recalled how MTC was behind two of her greatest professional honors to date: The off-Broadway production of Ruined, in which she made her stage debut in 2009, and now Saint Joan, in which she is currently starring at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre. Still, she was basket of nerves before stepping into the role as hostess. “I’m not playing a character so it’s just me out there!” she joked backstage. “I’m actually really awkward, but I’m going to use it.” Spoken like a true thespian.

Before the roomful of Broadway enthusiasts met Rashad with a warm reception, MTC artistic director Lynne Meadow delivered a moving speech about the differences the organization is making in the theater community, including a program that focuses on at-risk youths by giving them a paid opportunity to engage in a theater-making experience. Meadow also touched on how the craft continues to connect us all. “It’s always been the way the human beings can most easily process and understand our lives,” she told the crowd. “Maybe it’s because of technology, maybe it’s because of the news we read every day . . . but we need, more than ever, to shine the bright lights of the theater on what makes us so complicated, so resilient, and so beautiful.”

A similar roller-coaster of emotions could be felt during the performances that followed, which highlighted the range of hits now showing on the Great White Way. From the vacation good vibes of Escape to Margaritaville to the social anxiety pulsating through Mean Girls to the foot-stomping, disco diva–belting hits of The Donna Summer Musical, it was the ultimate way to get a taste of the best of Broadway—at least until next season.